


Guilt

by orphan_account



Category: Chronicles of Narnia - All Media Types
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-07-31
Updated: 2017-07-31
Packaged: 2018-12-09 05:27:42
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 569
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11662545
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: Caspian blames Peter for leaving.





	Guilt

“You abandoned Narnia. You abandoned your subjects, your people.”

    Peter’s face is contorted with pain and rage and guilt and hurt. Caspian’s words feel like a knife through the heart. He’s right. He did abandon everything. All because of a stag.

    “Do you think we had a choice? Do you think I wanted to leave? Huh? You think I enjoyed growing up and becoming a man --- a _king_ \---and living this fantastic life as a ruler only to have it snatched away like _that_ ? One minute my siblings and I are chasing some stag through the forest and the next we’re sprawled on the floor in front of the wardrobe. Imagine being a grown adult and then suddenly you’re a kid again! Imagine, after all the ruling and growing as a person, you have to sit in classrooms all day, listening to the droning of a professor! Imagine having people look down on you and you being able to do _nothing_! Imagine not being able to put up a fight as you’re getting pummeled by a classmate! You have _no idea_ what I feel. What _guilt_ and _pain_ I feel after hitting the floor in that room! The pain of being stuck back in the real world, the guilt of leaving _everything_ behind! You have no right to say _anything_!” He’s in Caspian’s face now, tears in his eyes as he yells, finally letting out all that anger he’s been dealing with for the past year.

    “Peter....” Lucy comes up behind him and gently tugs on his sleeve. A glance down at his sister’s frightened eyes softens his harsh look. He looks back at Caspian, and, with one last glare, retreats down into the tunnels, his siblings in tow.

* * *

 “Caspian is right. We did leave everything behind...,” mutters Lucy, her expression sorrowful.

    “Oh, so now you’re siding with him?” Peter paces in front of the stone table, his fists clenched.

    “No, what Lucy is trying to say is that we did leave.” Susan stands in front of Peter. “No explanation, no reasoning. Imagine what the Narnians felt when they found out their Kings and Queens had vanished, having no one to give them any direction. For _years_.”

    He stops his pacing and looks at his sister, his face guilt-ridden. Caspian and Susan are both right, now. The guilt he’s been feeling for the past year finally pushes him to the edge. He falls to his knees. “We’re no good rulers, leaving Narnia behind like that...You’re both right, you and Caspian. We should’ve come back sooner. Or never even gone after that stag in the first place. Or, better yet...Lucy should’ve never found that wardrobe.”

    “Don’t you are say that, Peter.” Lucy kneels next to him. “We’re great rulers, the lot of us. Yeah, we did leave, but if we never left, we would’ve never gone back to reality in the first place. Probably never even met Caspian. I known you feel guilt. So do we, but we can go back to ruling. Maybe even better than before. So chin up.” Lucy wraps her arms around her brother and smiles as he returns the favor. Susan and Edmund join in not too long after.

    Peter takes her words into account, a slight smile on her face. Now she’s the only right one. He needs to stop feeling so guilty. After all, he does have another war to stop.


End file.
